Migrant Influx Overwhelms Southern Border as Title 42 Winds Down

A massive surge of migrants sought to cross from Mexico into the U.S. on Thursday, straining resources and patience on both sides of the border as the pandemic-era measure known as Title 42 was set to end at midnight.

The policy allows Border Patrol agents to swiftly expel migrants back to Mexico even if they ask for asylum, serving as a blunt enforcement tool for two successive administrations. Though Title 42, originally introduced by then-President Trump in March 2020, has in some ways resulted in increasing illegal border crossings, it still served in the eyes of the Border Patrol and many politicians as a reasonably effective tool to deter asylum seekers.